Foreign Workers

ARTICLES ABOUT FOREIGN WORKERS BY DATE - PAGE 3

Singapore: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has asked foreign workers to obey Singapore's laws and social norms, as he described as "inexcusable" the recent outbreak of violence following the death of an Indian worker here. "We will continue to treat foreign workers fairly, but we expect them to obey our laws and social norms," Lee said in his New Year message. "The riot in Little India was inexcusable. We have taken firm action against the culprits. Several have been charged, others warned and repatriated, and still others advised to abide strictly by our laws," he said last night.

SINGAPORE: Some 200 foreign workers, including Indians, were today issued formal police advisories for alleged involvement in Singapore's worst street violence in 40 years. The move came two days after 56 Indians and a Bangladeshi were deported from Singapore for alleged involvement in the December 8 riot in Little India, a precinct of Indian-origin businesses, eateries and pubs where most South Asian workers take their Sunday break. Police said those issued advisories had played "a passive and incidental" role during the riot.

SINGAPORE: Singapore today said 52 Indians were deported for alleged rioting in the city-state's worst street violence in 40 years, while four other Indians will be repatriated tonight. The process of deporting 53 men - 52 Indians and one Bangladeshi - began yesterday even as authorities were pressing criminal charges against 28 Indians for their role in the December 8 rampage in Little India, a precinct of Indian-origin businesses, eateries and pubs where most of the South Asian workers take their Sunday break.

SINGAPORE: A group of civil society volunteers today called for a full-fledged probe into allegations of police assault against protesters detained following the December 8 riots erupted after foreign workers, including Indians, went on a rampage here. The group 'Workfair Singapore' said the allegations were extremely grave and deserve the full investigative weight of the authorities. "'Workfair Singapore' is deeply dismayed that some of those remanded on charges of rioting in the 'Little India' incident have complained of police assault in a place where there was no camera," said the group in a statement posted on its website today.

SINGAPORE: Singapore today said it will not stop the hiring of foreign workers from South Asia - most of whom come from India and Bangladesh - following the city-state's worst outbreak of violence in over 40 years. Giving this assurance, Singapore's Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin allayed the concerns raised by several workers during dialogue and outreach sessions in the aftermath of the Little India riot on December 8. Tan told media here that many of the workers have denounced what happened in Little India, a precinct of Indian-origin businesses, eateries and pubs where most of the South Asian workers take their Sunday break, triggered by an Indian national's death in a bus accident.

DUBAI: Nearly 6,000 Indians in Saudi Arabiahave secured a full-time employment since an amnesty was announced in April for illegal foreign workers to regularise their residency. Faiz Ahmed Kidwai , Indian consul general in Jeddah, saidthe diplomatic mission dealt with more than 10,000 Indians andhelped them correct their status, either by transferring theirsponsorship, renewing their residence permits or changing their professions. "When we saw the large number of people who came to theconsulate asking for work, we invited companies to come and hire regular employees who had corrected their status," he said.

MELBOURNE: Australia today implemented a new stringent visa regime for hiring of foreign workers, allowing businesses to recruit expatriates only after exhausting all local options, besides increasing the visa fees. As for the existing 457 visa scheme , the employers will now have to declare that they could not find an Australian for a particular job before hiring any foreign worker . Under the new rule, companies will have to advertise for four months in a newspaper for a position before sponsoring a foreigner, Sydney Morning Herald reported.

KARACHI: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif may face a major economic challenge when more than 50,000 illegal Pakistani workers in Saudi Arabia, the largest source of remittances for Pakistan, would be deported after the July 3 amnesty deadline set by the Gulf Kingdom expires. The large scale deportation is looming ahead despite the strong ties between Sharif and the Saudi royal family in the wake of new Saudi labour law called 'Nitaqat' that makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers.

CHENNAI: DMK chief M Karunanidhi today sought intervention of the Centre and state governments' to take steps and protect the livelihood of thousands of Tamil labourers living in Saudi Arabia following that nation's implementation of 'Nitaqat' labour laws . "These are people who have been living and working there with their families for years together after migrating there. We want the Centre and state governments to come forward to help them stay there. So, I urge the Centre and state governments to intervene in this issue and help them stay there and protect their livelihood," he said in a statement.

MELBOURNE: Eighty Indians were among hundreds of foreign workers and students who were reportedly duped to pay excessive fee for an Australian working visa by recruitment agents, raising serious concern over the misuse of a visa scheme which allows hiring immigrants . Foreign workers were promised long-term work or permanent residency if they paid between 5,000 and 40,000 Australian dollars to middlemen across the nation only to be...